Ultra-Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery Gives Patient Her Life Back

Debbi Jesse, 51, is outside mowing her lawn, an activity she couldn’t do prior to her ultra-minimally invasive—also known as endoscopic—spine surgery at Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital. For years, Debbi had been in pain, which ranged from stabbing to sharp to shooting throughout most of the lower half of her body, including her back, hips, and glutes. 

“It was really miserable,” she says. “I was an active person—I mow yards, have chickens, have a large garden, run. I couldn’t do any of that because I was in too much pain.”

However, it was an acute pain in her right leg that led Debbi, who lives in St. Louis County, to seek surgery last year. It turned out that she had a cyst on her spine that was pressing into a nerve, and she also had a bulging disk in her back, which exacerbated the pain. 

A referral from a WashU Medicine neuromuscular physician to John Ogunlade, DO, a WashU Medicine neurosurgeon at Barnes-Jewish West County, changed everything.

A focused, targeted surgery to alleviate pain

From her first meeting with Dr. Ogunlade, Debbi was impressed. The surgeon came to WashU Medicine to develop the endoscopic spine surgery program at BJC HealthCare, which has since grown to include five surgeons, made up of a collaborative team of neurosurgeons and orthopedic surgeons, who perform more than 300 procedures a year

“Dr. Ogunlade seemed really bright and very skilled,” Debbi says. He recommended a surgery to decompress her spine, and when he told her he’d be able to perform it through a pinhole, that it’d only require a 7-mm incision, and that it would be an outpatient procedure, Debbi was amazed. “When he told me how minimally invasive it was, that blew my mind,” she says. 

Endoscopic spine surgery uses a tool called a spinal endoscope, a long, rigid tube with an integrated camera and light attached to the end, to help the surgeon see inside the body without making a large incision. Specialized instruments are inserted through the spinal endoscope to decompress the nerves and the spinal cord. 

“It’s different than traditional surgery in that we are using natural orifices of the spine that already exist,” Dr. Ogunlade says. “We essentially widen those orifices using the endoscope, which allows us to decompress neuronal structures without significant trauma to the non-diseased anatomy. It’s a very focused and targeted surgery.”

It’s important to Dr. Ogunlade that patients understand their pathology, their imaging, and the reason for performing a surgery. “I let them know that endoscopic surgery—the least invasive tool in our team’s toolbox—offers a opportunity for quicker recovery, and an improvement in symptoms, with a quicker return to work,” he says. 

Undergoing endoscopic decompression surgery

In May 2024, Debbi had endoscopic decompression surgery with Dr. Ogunlade, which was a success. 

“By the time I was home that evening, the pain was gone,” Debbi says. “I didn’t use painkillers, no hot pack or cold pack—there was just no pain.”

Dr. Ogunlade stayed connected to Debbi following the surgery and gave her a research app to download, which he used to track her recovery. Through the app, she could also reach out directly to him with any questions. 

“He didn’t care if I had the silliest questions,” Debbi says. "He was there, and I was really impressed by that on a personal level, that he was concerned and willing to be there for me.”

Today, six months after surgery Debbi is still pain-free and feeling more agile, and she praises Dr. Ogunlade for her new level of freedom. 

“I’m able to do things I couldn’t do for years, since my 30s and 40s,” she says. “The doctor told me, ‘Whatever you feel like doing, do it—just don’t overdo it.’ I didn’t have any downtime. I just went back to my life. There was no surgical pain, and my pain was completely gone.” Debbi was able to walk, sit, and stand with zero pain. 

“Dr. Ogunlade gave me my life back,” Debbi says. “He really saved me.”